> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.semicola.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How IU billing works

> What an Intelligence Unit pays for, what stays free, the plans, and a calculator for your month.

export const IuCalculator = () => {
  const [buys, setBuys] = useState(6);
  const [briefs, setBriefs] = useState(40);
  const ius = Math.max(0, Number(buys) || 0) + Math.max(0, Number(briefs) || 0);
  const plans = [{
    name: 'Metered',
    fee: 0,
    included: 0
  }, {
    name: 'Committed 250',
    fee: 1000,
    included: 250
  }, {
    name: 'Committed 1,000',
    fee: 3000,
    included: 1000
  }];
  const usd = n => '$' + n.toLocaleString('en-US');
  return <div className="not-prose" style={{
    border: '1px solid rgba(127,127,127,0.3)',
    borderRadius: 12,
    padding: 16
  }}>
      <label style={{
    display: 'block',
    marginBottom: 8
  }}>
        Media buys with spend this month (non-social):{' '}
        <input type="number" min="0" value={buys} onChange={e => setBuys(e.target.value)} style={{
    width: 90
  }} />
      </label>
      <label style={{
    display: 'block',
    marginBottom: 12
  }}>
        Brief responses by your storefront agent this month:{' '}
        <input type="number" min="0" value={briefs} onChange={e => setBriefs(e.target.value)} style={{
    width: 90
  }} />
      </label>
      <p style={{
    margin: '0 0 8px'
  }}>
        <strong>{ius}</strong> IUs this month.
      </p>
      <ul style={{
    margin: 0
  }}>
        {plans.map(p => <li key={p.name}>
            {p.name}:{' '}
            {p.included === 0 ? `${usd(ius * 5)} at $5 per IU` : ius <= p.included ? `${usd(p.fee)}, with ${p.included - ius} included IUs to spare` : `${usd(p.fee)} plus ${ius - p.included} IUs over the included ${p.included}`}
          </li>)}
      </ul>
    </div>;
};

Semicola takes **0% of media**. It charges for intelligent work, measured in **Intelligence Units
(IUs)**. Every price is published on the rate card before you act, so nothing meters silently.

## What costs IUs

Rate Card v4 has exactly three activities. Each starts at the catalog price below; your plan then
applies its own terms, and only the Rate Card your organization accepted can consume IUs.

| Activity                    | Starting rate                 | When it is charged                                                                                    |
| --------------------------- | ----------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Brief response              | 1 IU per response             | One completed merchandising cycle by a hosted storefront agent.                                       |
| Enhanced Reporting          | 4 IUs per account, per period | One connected account per billing period, once Enhanced Reporting is on and its reporting has synced. |
| Semicola Exchange media buy | 1 IU per buy, per period      | One qualifying non-social media buy per billing period with impressions or spend.                     |

The standard plans waive Enhanced Reporting, so it shows its 4-IU catalog price but draws nothing.
Accepting a plan freezes its Rate Card: a newer card never reprices an agreement you already have.
Integrations read the organization's offer, plans and resolved schedule from
`GET /api/v2/billing/iu-rate-card/v4` (organization admins).

## What stays free

* Listing your own storefront.
* Connecting to sellers, discovering products and mapping accounts.
* Requesting proposals from sellers. (The seller's storefront agent response is billed to the seller.)
* Reading delivery and reports.

## Plans

| Plan              | Monthly fee | Included IUs | Beyond the included IUs |
| ----------------- | ----------- | ------------ | ----------------------- |
| **Pay as you go** | none        | none         | \$5 per IU              |
| **250**           | \$1,000     | 250          | \$5 per IU              |
| **1,000**         | \$3,000     | 1,000        | \$5 per IU              |

Custom plans are available for larger organizations. New organizations receive a one-time grant of
100 setup IUs that expires 60 days later. Committed plans carry unused IUs into the next period
only, up to 50% of that period's included quantity.

## Worked examples

**A buyer running six campaigns.** Six non-social media buys had spend this month: 6 IUs. On the
metered plan that is \$30.

**A publisher answering briefs.** The storefront agent answered 180 briefs and the storefront had no
buys of its own: 180 IUs. Pay as you go costs $900; the 250 plan costs $1,000 and leaves 70 IUs to spare.

## Calculator

<IuCalculator />

## Where to see it

**Settings → Plan & billing** shows the balance, IUs used this period, projected month-end usage, the
published price list and any next step, such as accepting terms or adding a payment method. Billing
is managed by organization admins; child accounts see "Billing is handled at the organization level".